Love and Death
by mbrothers
Summary: Link has died. This has left everyone struck with grief, but no one more than Zelda. She then finds comfort,however, in the arms of a blue-haired prince...
1. Passing of Link

Link laid there on the bed, barely breathing and motionless. Zelda sat in a chair by the side of the bed. Link was covered up to his neck; otherwise he'd have been freezing. But not because it was cold, in fact it was a scorching summer day. No, it was because _he_ was cold even then.

Many weeks ago, Link had contracted a rare disease. For months, he fought it to stay alive, but he held out for as long as he could. Dr. Mario had created both a cure and a vaccine. Donkey Kong, Roy, Samus, Zelda and Sonic had also contracted the disease, but Dr. Mario was able to cure them and vaccinate everyone else. Link, however, could not be saved. The disease had spread too far. And so, he was doomed to leave this world.

The vaccinations were going on, so Zelda was the only one by Link's side. Her eyes were red from weeping for her doomed love one. Link did not have the strength to lift his arms or move at all really. He could barely even speak.

"Do…not…give…up…" Link managed to say, "Don't…give up…living..."

"How can I not?" Zelda asked, "How can I live on without you?"

"You… lived on… before… you met… me…"

"Before then, there was an empty space in me," Zelda said, "You filled it. And with you gone, the space will be empty again. And even more so, I don't doubt."

"Promise me…" Link said, "Promise… you'll move on… and find someone else… to fill that empty space… to love… as I loved you…"

"Link, I…" Zelda said, "I don't see how I could ever love someone else as I loved you. I don't see how I can live without you."

"You… can… you… must… not… give up…"

After a moment, Zelda said, "All right. I promise you Link."

Link did not say anything else. He only smiled for a moment. Then his eyes started to close as he slumped his head to the side. He never moved again.

Zelda sat in shock. She gave into tears after a moment. Her love, Link, the Hero of Time, was dead.


	2. Zelda in Mourning

The wind blew across the grass, symbolizing the passing on of the smashers' lost comrade. His body had been lay to rest just outside the mansion. All the smashers were attending, even the more than reluctant Ganondorf. Most of them had things to say, but none as much as Zelda. Her eulogy must have gone on for at least half an hour. After that, Link's funeral was over and many left. All except Zelda. She stayed there until nightfall. She didn't want to, but she just couldn't bring herself to leave. After hours, she finally blacked out.

When she came to the next morning, she found Marth sitting next to her bed.

"How long was I asleep?"

Marth thought for a few moments and said, "About 8 hours."

Zelda looked at the clock and saw it was 10:07. She rubbed her eyes as she sat up.

"Listen," Marth said, "Everyone's worried about you."

"They are?"

"Yeah. You stand by Link's grave till almost 2:00 in the morning until you black out. You haven't said anything to anyone between Link's death and the funeral. What's not to worry about?"

"I don't mean to make everyone worry," Zelda said

"Well, we just want to help,"

"I'm fine, I don't need help,"

"Are you sure?" Marth asked, "Even after last night?"

Zelda stared blankly for a moment and answered, "No. I'm not sure of anything anymore."

"I know," Marth said, grimly.

Zelda knew Marth would understand. He had lost the woman he loved a couple years ago. It was a long time before he was able to move on, but Zelda knew he had never completely gotten over it, and never would. And she knew it would be the same with her. Because there are some wounds even time cannot fully heal.

"Zelda," Marth said, "I don't want you to be alone in this like I was."

"Thank you," Zelda said.

"Just remember," Marth said, "I'm here for you."


	3. A Helping Hand

A few days later, Zelda got up in the morning, having another night of little sleep. Every time she closed her eyes, she thought of him. No matter how hard she tried…

"You need your sleep," Marth said in Zelda's doorway, interrupting her thoughts.

"I know," Zelda said, "But he's all I can think of."

"I know," Marth said, "And he'll be all you want to think of, but you can't."

"What else is there to think of?" Zelda asked.

"Think of your friends, who care about you, who want to help you,"

"Is that how you got through it?" Zelda asked.

"Yes,"

"Was there anything else?"

"No, but there was one person in particular who got me through it. Who was the reason I was able to move on," Marth explained.

"Does this person know how much you were helped by him or her?"

"No,"

"Why haven't you ever told that person?"

"Because," Marth said, "this person could not know, because of how he or she helped me."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, this person helped me in a way, that if he or she knew… it wouldn't do either of us any good. It would just create problems,"

"Marth," Zelda said, "How could this person replace all the pain you felt?"

"Believe me," Marth said, "This person could. I just hope I can do the same for you."

"I could never thank you enough for that," Zelda said. With that, she embraced Marth. It wasn't long before Marth realized she had fallen asleep. As Marth put her on the bed, he had a renewed sense of hope. _Zelda might be all right after all_, he thought.

Sorry for not AN the last couple chapters. Anyways, I just want to give some advice. If you're writing a fanfic and or chapter that has a sad or tragic tone to it, I recommend listening to the theme from Pan's Labyrinth while writing it. It will get you in the PERFECT mood for writing that genre. See ya!


	4. A Mysterious Secret

Zelda woke up the next day, having her first goodnights sleep in days. She walked down to breakfast. Marth was sitting there, alone. He clearly had something on his mind. As if something were bothering him.

He looked up as Zelda walked in.

"Good morning," he said.

"Good morning," Zelda replied.

Zelda took a seat across the table from him.

"Is something bothering you?" Marth asked.

"No, it's just… when can you move on?"

"As soon as you want to," Marth said.

"What do you mean?"

"If you want to move on, you can within a week or two at most. But, some simply wouldn't want to. And so, it becomes their lives. All they do for the rest of their days is mourn for their loved ones. But that doesn't have to be you,"

"I don't want that to happen," Zelda said.

"Trust me; it won't," Marth said, "Not as long as I can help it."

"You're a great friend, Marth," Zelda said, "I can't tell you how much I appreciate that."

Marth looked down for a moment, as if he were disappointed.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Marth said.

Zelda thought for a moment.

"When I came down, you looked like you had something on your mind," Zelda said, "What was it?"

"Nothing," Marth said as he got up and left.

_I wander what's troubling him,_ Zelda thought as she sat alone with her thoughts.

AN: No, it's not over yet. There seems to have been some confusion about that. I can see why you'd think that, but trust me, not yet. I have another 3 chapters to go. Anyways, sorry for not updating in a few days. See ya!


	5. A Truth Revealed

Three weeks had passed since Link's death. Zelda was slowly moving on, with Marth's help. She now felt only a fraction of the pain she felt before. Of course, she would never completely get over Link's death, but Marth helped her get to the point where she could move on.

One day, Zelda found Marth, talking with Roy.

"Marth," she said, "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Of course," Marth said as Roy got up and left the room.

"I just wanted to thank you again for all that you've done for me," Zelda said, "If I hadn't been for you, I don't know how else I would've survived."

Zelda was eternally grateful for what Marth did, but what he said next took Zelda completely off guard, and would remain in Zelda's mind for the rest of her life.

"You did the same for me," Marth said.

"What do you mean?" Zelda asked.

"I mean, when you among many others tried to comfort me after Sheeda died, you were the one who made a difference, no one else did but you,"

"How?" Zelda asked. She did try to help him, but she didn't know how she could've anymore than anyone else. She was his friend before that, but certainly not his closest.

"Because… I love you…"

Sorry for the long delay. My family came to visit the last few days before I went back to school, so… See ya! Also, tell me in the review what should happen next, A, B, C or D:

Zelda, in shock, gets up and leaves the room.

Marth gets angry at himself for saying that and leaves and leaves Zelda there, shocked.

Zelda tearfully slaps Marth and leaves.

Zelda laughs in his face and leaves him heartbroken.

Okay, don't pick D. I am thinking of going with A, though B would be fine. But, if anyone wants C, then… the reviewers always right!


	6. Anger and Confusion

Zelda was in shock. Had Marth really said what she thought she heard him say? Or was it a figment of her imagination?

She looked into his eyes and saw that it wasn't the later. He really loved her. The question was… what was she supposed to say? Did she love him back? Or was the urge to say so only made out of pity?

"M-Marth, I…" Zelda began to say.

Marth stood up and turned the face the wall, leaning his hand against it. They were both silent for a moment, neither sure what to say next, not after what Marth had said.

"I'm sorry," he said at last, now angry with himself for admitting his feelings for Zelda, "I shouldn't have said that."

He then left the room and left Zelda alone.

Zelda was overwhelmed with confusion and uncertainty. She knew now. Marth loved her. That was no doubt the reason he wanted to help her so much. She had never thought of him as anymore than a friend… or did she? Perhaps the newfound desire to return Marth's feelings had not been created just then, but discovered just then. After the past few weeks, she could not be certain of anything anymore.

She wanted then to get up and go find Marth, tell him she loved him as well, and that he didn't have to be afraid to admit it. But one thing held her back: Link. She had promised him that she would move on, but she had no doubt Marth had loved her before Link's death. Most likely he found new love in her when she had comforted him about the death of Sheeda, for nearly a year now. Would Link want her to be with a man who had secretly wanted to be with her for so long? What _would_ Link think of Marth now?

"Link," Zelda said, "Guide me through this."

Well, as you can see, I went with B. Since there was a tie, Lucas (who, in case you don't know, is the brother I share this account with) decided. Thanks to Clear Blue for giving me an idea of how it would go. See ya!


	7. Love Realized

Later that night, Marth was sitting alone on a balcony on the top level of the mansion. The full moon was high in the sky. He was obviously deep in thought.

Suddenly, he noticed Zelda standing in the door way behind him. He got up and turned around to face her. Her face no longer had the confused expression he saw earlier. Her expression was now confident, as if she were going to tell him something.

Marth turned around again and put his hands on the rail. Neither of them spoke for a moment.

"Zelda…" Marth started.

"Listen," Zelda said, "You did the right thing earlier."

Marth turned to face her again, now confused.

"What?" Marth asked, not sure if he heard her correctly.

"To hide how you feel would be wrong, for both of us," Zelda said, "You had every right to say it."

"That doesn't make it any better," Marth said.

"Perhaps not, but I think this does…"

"What?"

Zelda paused for a moment before saying, "I love you too."

Marth was now in shock. He had never dreamt she would say those words together to him.

Neither of them said anything for a moment.

Finally Marth said, "Would you care to join me?"

Zelda came and they sat next to each other, looking up at the stars.

"How long have you felt this way?" Marth asked.

"In a way, I guess I have for a long time now. I've just never realized it until now," Zelda answered.

"Are you sure?"

"Excuse me?"

"Are you sure you feel this way?"

"I…" Zelda was trying to find the right words for it.

"Only one way to find out," Marth said as he leaned towards her. Zelda did likewise until their lips contacted. It took a moment, but Zelda realized. She did love him. Just like how she loved Link. And she realized then that two things that filled life were…

Love and Death.

Well, that's the end of that. This was my first attempt at a MarthxZelda. Tell me what you think! Day in the Life of a Smasher will be coming be up by Friday, so stay tuned. See ya!

UPDATE: In response to Lucas's review: Well, seeing as how you didn't live up to your end of the deal by not even seriously thinking of what you're going to write, I'd say that makes us even!


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